An Evening At The Beach
by Amberz-Eyez
Summary: Sequel to A Day In Manhattan. Another sweet one shot about Thalia. As she wanders the beach in the evening, she finds herself comforting a crying girl who's father died in a car accident. Thalia helps her to realize that she has to move on and carve out a new future. And she helps her do just that with a little magic and wonder from Artemis. A happy and sad story. T to be safe. :


An evening haze had settled over the beach, mist swirling off the water. The sun had just set leaving fiery streaks of red and orange on the clouds. The waves lapped the shore as a dark haired girl jogged along. The temperature was dropping slowly, preparing for night. There was to be a blue moon tonight, the second moon of the month. The dark haired girl slowed and began to splash little arcs of water up with her feet. A circlet of silver sat upon her brown spiky hair and a bow was slung across her back, gleaming in the last rays of light. Of course, the mist prevented mortals from noticing. The girl sighs. It has been a long day with the Hunters. This is exactly what she needs . . . The roar of the waves soothes her and the gentle waters relieve her aching feet. She tilts her head up and parts her lips slightly letting the light shine on her face. Silvery light floats from her lips and disappears into the misty sky as it travels to her patron goddess. She remains there studying the sky until giggles erupt beside her. There stands a group of teenage girls and boys encircling a roaring bonfire laughing and chasing each other round and round. The girl can not help but roll her eyes until she sees a silhouette in the background. There . . . just behind a boy is a small little girl shivering from the cold. She has obviously been excluded form the inner circle. The girl pulls her jacket tighter, and casting a glace over her shoulder, sighs and walks away. The dark haired girl feels anger rising inside of her but allows it to vanish before following the small girl. She treads at a safe distance until the girl at last comes to a stop and sits down her legs crossed, staring at the sky. She is so lost in thought that she doesn't see the dark haired girl sit down beside her. "Mind if I sit here?" she enquires. The small girl jumps about a foot before cautiously saying, "Oh . . . I um . . . sure", going shy. The small girl ducks her head away cheeks burning. The dark haired girl merely laughs and collapses on her back staring up at the stars. The small girl tentatively unfolds her legs and sits back as well. They are both silent for some time. "You see those stars there? The ones that look a bit like a girl?" The small girl nods and says, "That's Virgo, right?". The dark haired girl nods in surprise. "Yes. You seem to know you're constellations well!" The small girl gives a ghost of a smile before returning to her sad far away look. "I . . . used to live in Oregon before we moved. If you get a chance to go you should. It's beautiful with rolling mountains and creeks and misty mornings . . . And on the west coast there's even a beach. At night my family and my sisters and I all sat out on picnic blankets just staring up at the stars. They aren't as vivid here but it comforts me knowing that no matter where you are, its the same stars and constellations." The dark haired girl nods. "I never really thought about it like that. Does your family still stargaze?". The small girl sits still. "N-no. After we moved, my d-dad was in a car crash and he . . ." the girl burst out in sobs. Awkwardly the dark haired girl pats her back as the small girl weeps. Saying a small prayer the dark haired girl taps the small girls shoulder. The small girl looks up, nose running, eyes puffy. The girl hands her a tissue. The dark haired girl says quietly, "You know . . . when someone is gone it feels as if there's a hole in your heart. You can try and fill it with memories or by busying yourself but truly . . . you're making it worse. I like to think that even though they're gone, they would still want you to continue with your life. And while everything may seem uncertain and you try to surround yourself with fake happiness, the best thing to do is let out your sadness and grasp your memories before making new ones and letting go. Being with them," the girl jerks her head toward the bonfire," is not going to fill that hole in your heart. It's your job to hang on to good memories and let the bad ones go and plow onwards. Life isn't going to be easy but its your job to make it enjoyable." Tears trickled down the small girl's face as she buries her head in the other girl's sweater. The dark haired girl past her back before whispering and casting a silvery light over the girl's back. Immediately her tears slowed and her shoulders stopped trembling. When the small girl looked up, her face was still blotchy but held an expression of wisdom far beyond her years and a powerful look of determination shone in her eyes. "You're right. I have to make up for that time I lost . . ." The dark haired girl stood to leave. The small girl noticed how the mist seemed to cling to her. The dark haired girl helped her to stand and then pointed at the sky. The girl's eyes followed and there quivering in the sky sat seven orb of white light in the unmistakable shape of her father's face. She gasped and turned. "B-but how did you? How . . ." she said to empty space. She rubbed her eyes. The dark haired girl was already an impossibly far distance down the beach. The small girl scrambled through the sand and yelled, "Wait! I never knew your name!". And then came an echoing reply, "T . . .ha . . .lia!". The small girl blinked as silvery mist enclosed around the Thalia and disspaeared. The girl turned to stare at the beautiful moon and swore it winked at her. With a voice full of wonder she whispered the name, "Thalia . . ."


End file.
